The Different Assumptions between American and Japanese Management

Just as Douglas Mac Gregor's theory X and Y were based on management assumptions about people, so too is Ouichi's Theory Z approach. Here are 5 Theory Z principles.

1.     Job Security :

The Japanese Theory Z approach believes that people are a far too valuable resource to be lost when the economy has a downturn. In a recession, the Japanese don't fire people, they'll reduce their hours until things pick up. By contrast, when a US company is in trouble, they waste no time laying people off and as a result lose all the knowledge, skills, and expertise that go with them.

2.     Trust :

The Japanese feel that you should never give people a reason to distrust you. Loyalty is expected of all employees. In American companies, distrust and suspicion are endemic. If a person or supplier is not delivering, the company will go elsewhere for a better deal.

3.     Decision-Taking :

There are two differences between the Japanese and American approaches to decision-making. In Japanese companies, everyone gets involved in the decision-taking process as part of their commitment to the organization. As a result, the process is slow. In the US, decision-taking is the responsibility of the few and so is quick.

4.     Teamwork:

In Japan, organizational success is viewed as the result of team effort, so it is illogical to reward individuals. In the US, there is still a belief that, if you do the work and claim the results, you should get the reward.

5.     Motivation and Target-Setting:

The Japanese corporation rarely sets individuals targets as a way of motivating them. They believe that individual motivation comes from others in the team. As a result, it often takes years before a Japanese employee receives their first performance evaluation and even longer before they are promoted. By contrast, the American corporation believes that the role of management is to set their subordinates targets and ensure that these are met, using evaluation and promotion as incentives and rewards.

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What are the three levels of analysis in an organizational behavior?

Individual level:

In individual level organizational behavior involves the study of learning, perception, creativity, motivation, personality, turnover, task performance, cooperative behavior, deviant behavior, ethics, and cognition. At this level of analysis, organizational behavior draws heavily upon psychology, engineering, and medicine.

Group level:

At the group level of analysis, organizational behavior involves of the study of group dynamics, intra- and inters group conflict and cohesion, leadership, power, norms, interpersonal communication, networks, and roles. At this level of analysis, organizational behavior draws upon the sociological and socio-psychological sciences

Organizational level:

At the organization level of analysis, organizational behavior involves the study of topics such as organizational culture, organizational structure, cultural diversity, inter-organizational cooperation and conflict, change, technology, and external environmental forces. At this level of analysis, organizational behavior draws upon anthropology and political science.

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Define organizational behavior

Organizational behavior is the study of the way people interact within groups. Normally this study is applied in an attempt to create more efficient business organizations. The central idea of the study of organizational behavior is that a scientific approach can be applied to the management of workers. Organizational behavior theories are used for human resource purposes to maximize the output from individual group members.  

There are a variety of different models and philosophies of organizational behavior. Areas of research include improving job performance, increasing job satisfaction, promoting innovation and encouraging leadership. In order to achieve the desired results, managers may adopt different tactics, including reorganizing groups, modifying compensation structures and changing the way performance is evaluated.

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Describe the various theories of motivation

Instinct Theory of Motivation: 

According to instinct theories, people are motivated to behave in certain ways because they are evolutionarily programmed to do so. An example of this in the animal world is seasonal migration. These animals do not learn to do this, it is instead an inborn pattern of motivation.

Incentive Theory of Motivation:

The incentive theory suggests that people are motivated to do things because of external rewards. For example, you might be motivated to go to work each day for the monetary reward of being paid. Behavioral learning concepts such as association and reinforcement play an important role in this theory of motivation.

Drive Theory of Motivation:

According to the drive theory of motivation, people are motivated to take certain actions in order to reduce the internal tension that is caused by unmet needs. For example, you might be motivated to drink a glass of water in order to reduce the internal state of thirst. This theory is useful in explaining behaviors that have a strong biological component, such as hunger or thirst. The problem with the drive theory of motivation is that these behaviors are not always motivated purely by physiological needs. For example, people often eat even when they are not really hungry.

Arousal Theory of Motivation:

The arousal theory of motivation suggests that people take certain actions to either decrease or increase levels of arousal. When arousal levels get too low, for example, a person might watch and exciting movie or go for a jog. When arousal levels get too high, on the other hand, a person would probably look for ways to relax such as meditating or reading a book. According to this theory, we are motivated to maintain an optimal level of arousal, although this level can vary based on the individual or the situation.

Humanistic Theory of Motivation:

Humanistic theories of motivation are based on the idea that people also have strong cognitive reasons to perform various actions. This is famously illustrated in Abraham Maslow's hierarchy of needs, which presents different motivations at different levels. First, people are motivated to fulfill basic biological needs for food and shelter, as well as those of safety, love and esteem. Once the lower level needs have been met, the primary motivator becomes the need for self-actualization, or the desire to fulfill one's individual potential.

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To what extent and how is money an effective motivation?

Despite the fact that most of the world works for the sake of financial reward, the need for money only obliges us to undertake certain sort of work, but doesn’t motivate in actual fact. For example, one of the theories of human motivation - ‘Money as a motivator theory’ is grounded on the belief that the need for money primarily motivates all workers (“Theories of Human,” 2004).

Nonetheless, such a statement is true just to a limited extent, to say the least. Although the very word “money” (which in final outcome aims to ensure greater happiness) would be the most common reply to the question of whatever causes us to work, in its own right it lags behind the variety of other human values. “A simple pay raise, naturally not identified as part of the corporate culture, would be defined as an external motivator.

Pay is expected, needed, and required - it is not necessarily an identifier of either corporate or personal identity” (Grossman, n.d., A brief pause section, para. 2). “Psychologists have been finding that rewards can lower performance levels, especially when the performance involves creativity” (Kohn, n.d., Introduction section, para. 2).

Furthermore, “if a reward - money, awards, praise, or winning a contest - comes to be seen as the reason one is engaging in an activity, that activity will be viewed as less enjoyable in its own right” (Kohn, n.d.).

Herzberg said about 'salary': "...when salary occurred as a factor in the lows (causes of dissatisfaction) it revolved around the unfairness of the wage system within the company... It was the system of salary administration that was being described... as something that went along with a person's achievement on the job. It was a form of recognition; it meant more than money; it meant a job well done; it meant that the individual was progressing in his work..."

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